The Story

Through the years, when folks discover the Rainbow Valley, this beautiful little valley nestled in the hills of San Diego County, they are sure that they have found the bow of promise with its fabled pot of gold. And through the years Rainbow Valley has been a wealth of solitude and beauty for its residents.

But time has tarnished a cornerstone of this lovely, rural community, our "little valley" school, Vallecitos. This school is part and parcel of the oldest school district in San Diego County, and has been continuously serving the Rainbow Valley since 1885.

Historically, there has been a close connection between the Rainbow community and Vallecitos School with residents providing labor and materials to build the original one-room schoolhouse and the money and manpower to maintain it.

The school's enrollment steadily increased and by 1956, the old school house had served its time. It was moved to Rainbow Valley Boulevard and shortly afterwards the first two units of the present school building were ready for occupancy. The community again gave a big assist by digging out a septic tank and leach lines.

But this "new" school has not been able to keep up with the times. And budget cuts have left the district short of the funds to propel students into the 21st Century like their schoolmates in Fallbrook and Bonsall.

That is why the Association for the Rainbow Community (ARC) has taken on this fundraising effort; for infrastructure improvements to Vallecitos School to guarantee the health and welfare of those attending and using the facilities.

Last year, the Board and Superintendent developed a Facilities Improvement List to identify areas needing the most improvement. The money raised will directly support those projects. The top of which are:

* Replacing walking ramps leading up to each of the student classrooms.

* Replacing the flooring, faucets and fixtures in student restrooms.

* Asphalt upgrade in parking lot and walkways throughout campus.

There are many in the Rainbow community that will gladly lend a hand to help with some of the less technical needs like tree removal and painting but the school's list of facilities improvements tops $5 million dollars! How can that be? Well, to be fair, the State of California will allocate small amounts for improvements! And to be unfair, the soft costs; for architects, testing and fees, are nearly $1 million.

Some of the issues are dangerous to the 200 students who attend the school, and still the district was turned down for a hardship grant. Are we willing to let this historic school crumble or will we restore the bow of promise we made to the residents of our community? Your donation will help us rebuild Rainbow's pot of gold.